Life Without the Earthquake
by 101Obsessions
Summary: What if DL-6 had never happened? The resolution of IS-7 and Miles Edgeworth's childhood if Gregory had lived. HUGE spoilers for ALL the games, INC. GK2, so you've all been warned. On hiatus for now!
1. Dec 28 2001

**_Yes, it's been done before. But I haven't seen very much at all from the point of view of Gregory Edgeworth, so I decided to put my own ideas down. _**

**_Basically, the events of AA if the earthquake that indirectly caused DL-6 had never happened, and how the Edgeworth family lives would have been different, as well as everyone else's. Ambitious prospect, yes._**

**_This chapter is basically the context for when DL-6 happened, minus the earthquake, and therefore there are spoilers for GK2, as that game has at least half of a case dedicated to what got Gregory killed. So spoilers ahoy!_**

**_See the first 'chapter' of authors notes for things on GK2._**

**_Disclaimer: I own nada. Ace Attorney and all of its wacky characters belong to Capcom._**

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><p>Gregory Edgeworth sighed underneath his breath as he left the courtroom. The magnificent foyer welcomed him, but he hardly noticed it. After all, he'd emerged from the same courtroom into the same foyer under pretty much the same circumstances every few months for almost a year now. Another loss, another delay, another appeal. This case was going to be the death of him.<p>

And he was the one who refused to let it go. Work colleagues, like Grossberg or Hammond, would tell him to drop it, that IS-7 was a lost cause.

Gregory knew it wasn't. He knew Issei Tenkai was innocent of the murder of the sculptor, and he knew that Manfred von Karma knew that. All Gregory had to do was find some way of proving it!

He stretched a moment, massaged his stiff neck. A small, grim smile came to his lips. Well, maybe today's circumstances were not so similar to all the others, after all. Today, Gregory had spotted the chink in von Karma's armour. He'd been disbelieving at first – it was so _obvious – _but then he realised it was genuine, and this was his big break.

Although it had not been brought up in court, the body of Isaku Hyodo, the victim, was missing, and the police had found absolutely no trace of it. Manfred von Karma had produced an autopsy report. Therefore, that report could not possibly be real, and was most definitely, absolutely, and in all ways certainly was forged.

And so he had called out in a clear voice and proved that the body had never been found, then pointed out the huge contradiction the autopsy then created. And all hell broke loose.

Von Karma's face had been a picture. As had the Head Prosecutor's – the man had looked almost disappointed in the 'god of prosecutors'. Gregory couldn't remember all of the man's words, but he heard him say something along the lines of;

"Von Karma, it's not like you to make this kind of error...and I never would have thought that Edgeworth would be the one to catch you."

A penalty, the first in von Karma's career, had been plastered over the German prosecutor's clean record. Gregory had allowed a small feeling of triumph – surely the first hurdle had been cleared now, and it was merely a matter of time.

Then, disaster. Issei Tenkai, weary of the year-long battle, had cracked and confessed on the stand, pushing what little advantage Gregory had firmly back onto the prosecution's side. The verdict had been innocent on the murder charge, but Tenkai was still being charged as being an accomplice to the murder. Gregory frowned to himself as he remembered. Now he would have to work even harder to prove the man's innocence.

For yes, he was still going to appeal, no matter what his colleagues said. He was going to get Issei Tenkai aquitted if it was the last thing he ever did.

With that grim thought in mind, he stepped out into the lobby where the elevators waited. And his serious expression melted away as a silver-haired boy looked up from his heavy book then leapt out of his seat in excitement.

"Father!"

Gregory allowed himself to smile down at his son as little Miles ran up to him, the heavy book swinging dangerously from one arm, stopping just short of colliding with the man's legs. Miles, being so much shorter than his father, had to tilt his head right back to look up into Gregory's face.

"You're finished, today, then? I'm glad. I've almost finished reading Garner's Dictionary, and I was worried I would be sitting around doing nothing before you got out."

Gregory smiled, putting a hand on his son's shoulder.

"Yes, son, I'm all done for the day. For the year, in fact. Shall we head on home, make sure everything's ready for the New Year?"

Miles nodded eagerly – then, seeming to realise he was doing so, he stopped and tried a more dignified nod instead. Gregory suppressed the urge to giggle suddenly. Miles just looked so sweet when he was trying to be serious, like him.

"Yes, Father. Let's do that."

Gregory smiled and looked up just as an elevator arrived – almost simultaneously, the bailiff for today's case arrived beside them. Gregory nodded to him.

"Going down, Yanni?"

The young man nodded.

"Yes, sir, Mr Edgeworth, sir."

The two men and young boy stepped into the elevator together, letting the silver doors slide shut. Yanni Yogi looked across at the defence attorney and smiled shyly.

"Um, good work in court today, Mr Edgeworth, sir. I've never seen anything like it."

Gregory couldn't help the dry chuckle.

"I still lost, Yanni."

He heard Miles' sigh of disappointment – he knew it wasn't directed at him, but at the lack of evidence to acquit the defendant. Gregory shook his head softly. It was flattering that Miles wanted to be a defence attorney so badly, but should he be worried that a nine-year-old was acting like a studied man of law?

The bailiff also laughed, but it was more light and cheerful.

"Well, we're all expecting you to just appeal again. Besides, today you actually caught Mr von Karma out! You got him the only penalty he's ever had!"

Miles gasped, then made a noise like a delighted squeal.

"He _did?_"

Gregory hid his smile, and lightly scolded his son.

"Miles, you're not supposed to sound so happy about it..."

Miles stopped smiling immediately and nodded, now looking much like a cemetery owl. Gregory sighed inwardly. Both he and his son needed to relax a while. Miles' seriousness was starting to scare him a little.

The elevator journey was uneventful, but Gregory kept spotting Miles' reflection in the polished metal. The young boy kept suddenly breaking into a smile, then realising and hurriedly trying to make his expression more sober and refined. He wasn't succeeding.

After a soft thud, the elevator chimed as the doors slid open. Yanni slid out first, bidding a quick goodbye to the others. He paused just long enough to doff his cap to both in turn.

"Messrs Edgeworth."

This made Miles smile again, and Gregory felt a similar expression appear on his own face. He put his hand on Miles' shoulder.

"Come on, son, maybe we can finish off those cakes that Mrs Wright baked us for Christmas, hmm?"

The small boy grinned widely.

"Yeah! I-er, I mean, yes, Father."

The man smiled harder, and together, father and son stepped out into the snow-covered parking lot, with the pink-grey sky already turning dark with the fall of another curtain of snowflakes.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Tried to make it sound as if it's really in California, so I used terms like 'parking lot' which are totally foreign to me, hehe. There are British spellings dotted around in there, just a warning. Also, Miles is reading <em>Garner's Dictionary of Legal Use_, a real book that I obviously don't own, which I guess has something to do with law. Whoo I know so much about this subject :P_**

**_I totally reckon that Miles still would be Mr Serious even if he hadn't had all his emotion zapped away by von Karma - I mean, suit and bowtie to school. Cute, but not exactly the usual attire. Miles just wants to be his dad so badly. And I think Greg is a fairly serious guy, but a good dad who's a little worried about his son. He needs to take the kid on a beach holiday and wear Hawaiian shirts, like a normal dad XD_**

**_(If it's unclear, 'Messrs' is a term used when one doesn't want to say 'Mr this and Mr that', or if you've got a lot of misters you're talking to. It basically means 'Mr Edgeworth and Mr Edgeworth' here, but Messrs is easier to say. Fun Fact: One usage of it you've probably come across is in Harry Potter, when he reads the Marauder's Map for the first time. 'Messrs Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs are proud to present the Marauder's Map' :P)_**


	2. A Winter's Day

Gregory Edgeworth sighed angrily, pushing a hand through his hair irritably and messing it up even further without even realising he was doing it. He adjusted his glasses and glared back at the desk in front of him.

Usually neat and tidy, it was in disarray, with notes all over the place – some in his handwriting, others in the hand of his young assistant, the trainee defence attorney. Tateyuki Shigaraki was a good kid, smart and observant, but god was his handwriting hard to read. Some of the pages were even slightly smudged from where the kid had - for some reason Gregory did not understand – been about to swallow it to 'remember' it, and changed his mind just as he put it in his mouth. Maybe if he could actually _decipher _half of it, maybe he'd actually have a lead on this _goddamn-_

Gregory paused in his thoughts, taking a deep breath. It didn't do to get angry or frustrated, certainly not at a boy who was trying to help.

His eyes flickered to one of the photographs sitting on his desk. Not one of the case, par se, but a more casual picture the teenager had taken, of the pair of them together on the case. It was a sweet gesture, and it had reminded Gregory of why Shigaraki was such a good assistant, and why he'd make such a good attorney. Loyalty was Shigaraki's 'talent', so to speak, and it was what made the boy special.

The almost perceptible smile on his face faded as he turned back to the mess of notes. He'd miss even the most obvious of clues if he let himself get distracted by anger, so he had to calm down. He let a breath out carefully, eyes wandering slowly over the pages again – photographs, notes, articles, doodles made by the 18-year-old. There had to be something he'd missed. A lead to where the body was. If Gregory could find the body, then he'd have the lead to proving Tenkai innocent once and for all and ending this stupid charade-

"Father?"

Gregory looked up from his work, realising quite how dark it was in the corridor outside, and spotted his son hovering at the threshold. Little Miles was wearing his slightly-too-baggy pale pink pyjamas (the colour produced when Gregory had accidentally left one of Miles' red socks in with the whites), his silver hair slightly scruffy, one hand wiping sleepy-dust from his eyes.

Gregory felt the smile come to his face.

"Hello, little Miles. Going to bed?"

"I did, two hours ago, Father. I couldn't sleep. I saw your light was on."

Gregory blinked, eyes glancing alongside at the wall clock. Eleven o'clock. He winced, then turned back to his son with an apologetic smile.

"Sorry for keeping you up, son. I was just going over the evidence again."

_For the hundredth time._

Looking mildly interested, Miles ambled over, tired eyes looking keenly at the notes, trying to make sense of them. Gregory felt a twinge of pride as Miles' eyes flickered from one page to the next, making the connections in his brain.

_He's going to make a fantastic defence attorney one day._

The father's pride soon melted into fatherly concern as Miles tried to hide a cavernous yawn. He slid an arm around his son's shoulders.

"Come on, Miles, you'd better get some sleep."

Miles nodded, never willing to argue with his father. As Gregory stood up to walk the boy back to his room, little Miles' hand slipped in between his fingers. As the boy spoke, some words were muffled by stifled yawns.

"Dad, when're you appealing again?"

Gregory looked back over his shoulder at the desk, then smiled down at his son.

"Not 'til after new year. No one wants to hold a trial this late in the year, and well, you and your friends wanted to go to People Park this week, right? You need someone to run you there."

Miles chuckled nervously, lowering his head so his hair hid his face.

"It's ok. I don't mind."

"I thought you wanted to build those snowmen with Phoenix and Larry? It'll be fun."

Miles shrugged, pretending to be interested in a vase that stood in the hallway.

"At first. Larry will start a snowball fight, and I'll get cold."

"I'll bring hot chocolate. Deal?"

Miles grinned tiredly up at his father.

"Deal. 'Night."

Gregory ruffled his son's hair fondly – it was so soft, like his mother's – and smiled softly back.

"Goodnight, son. I'll close the door so the light doesn't keep you awake, okay?"

The small boy nodded, entering his room with another yawn. He glanced back at his father.

"Don't stay up too long. You've got to drive in the morning."

The older man raised an eyebrow at the authoritative tone his son was using, but smiled.

"Yes, sir. See you in the morning."

Back at his desk, Gregory looked over the notes. Nothing was jumping out at him, no inspiration or sudden epiphany. He frowned, eyes going over the notes just one last time. A bunch of squiggles stared back, and he gave up.

This case was wearing him down. Although he wasn't going to just give it up without a fight, he really needed to take a break from it. And what with the New Year approaching and the world in a cheerful spirit, why not now? He could always take the appeal up after the holidays, when Miles was back at school.

That way, he could play chauffeur for Miles and that way his nine-year-old could spend some good time with the friends he'd made this year. Gregory's mouth twitched at the thought. Phoenix Wright and Larry Butz. Both were mad as hatters, but maybe that'd be good for little Miles. At this rate, Gregory would have to tone down his attitude in order to keep up with the refined manner of his son.

* * *

><p>The next morning saw a fresh blanket of snow, perfect for the three boys who each reacted to the snow in their own delighted way – Larry ran out to create a pile of snowballs to barrage passers-by; Phoenix went out and started to make snow angels (dressed in just his pyjamas, leading to him developing a cold in his fastest time yet); and little Miles had pressed up against the window of his room, already fully dressed in his warmest clothes, staring out at the white wonderland.<p>

Gregory was glad his son was able to find something other than law fascinating.

* * *

><p>That evening, a trench-coated man and a small silver-haired boy sank down onto a sodden bench almost as one, breathing a collective sigh of relief. Whilst the day had been full of fun and innocent play in the snow, there was only so long you could withstand the combined insanity of Miles' two best friends.<p>

The two now watched with some amusement as Larry whizzed around the icy playground on his new scooter, Phoenix desperately trying to catch up with him. Gregory tilted his head, watching the young boys as they played.

"Larry seems to have taken to that scooter pretty well."

Miles nodded absent-mindedly.

"Hmm, we all liked our Christmas presents this year, Larry especially. He says it's amazing because it's a Razor Scooter, not just an ordinary one."

Gregory peered through his glasses down at his son.

"What's the difference?"

Little Miles shrugged, not taking his eyes off of the scene in front of him.

"No idea."

There was a crash and a yell as Larry, in a last-ditch attempt to outrun Phoenix, took a turn too fast and skid over. Gregory tensed to jump up, but Phoenix got there first.

"Hey Larry, you okay?"

The small boy sat up from where he'd landed in a snowdrift and giggled manically.

"That was totally awesome! I gotta do that again!"

He bounced up, wholly uninjured or maybe just not caring about a few boring cuts and scrapes, and jumped back onto the scooter, despite Phoenix's protests that Larry had promised it was his go now.

Gregory relaxed, and glancing alongside realised his son hadn't bothered moving when Larry fell. The young boy answered his father's questioning look with another shrug.

"He's always getting into scrapes, and he always bounces back. He's stupid, though, because he'll just do it again – see?" He said quietly just as Larry, on cue, performed the same skid and crash into the snowdrift. The older man shook his head lightly then sighed.

"Well, he seems to be enjoying himself, at least."

A pause, then he glanced awkwardly alongside at his son.

"Uh, Miles, are you sure you didn't want anything like that for Christmas? No toy cars or scooters or, uh, those Tammy-got-you things?"

"Tamagotchi," Miles automatically corrected, having heard the term from his friends before, "But no, Father, those books I asked for are more than adequate, and British law is so fascinating, isn't it?"

"Um, yes."

Gregory Edgeworth fidgeted slightly. Although it was always nice to have a discussion about law, his passion, he never felt entirely comfortable talking about it with his nine-year-old son. Surely fourth graders should be more interested in more, well, childish things?

Just then, there was a yell of triumph as Phoenix Wright somehow managed to wrest control of the scooter from Larry and claim it for himself for a while. But rather than immediately jumping on, the spiky-haired boy walked the scooter over to the bench and smiled shyly. His cheeks were flushed pink from his cold, but Gregory had the sneaking suspicion that the growing redness on his ears had little to do with ill health.

"Um, hi, Miles. Did you want a go on it first? I can wait if you like."

The silver haired boy blinked, surprised by this offer, then shook his head.

"No, I'd rather see _you_ make a fool of yourself, Wright."

He paused, registering Phoenix's hurt expression, then continued in a quiet voice.

"Thanks, though."

Phoenix grinned widely at these words as though they were an essay of praise, then zoomed off on the scooter, laughing with delight. Miles leant back, content to watch him, but Gregory spotted the small pleased smile on the boy's face.

The defence attorney had to look away to hide his own smile. Thank goodness for children like Phoenix Wright.

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><p><strong><em>Gregory might be calm and collected at work, but at home I'd guess he's the same stresshead and workaholic all-nighter that Miles is in the canon story.<em>**

**_He also has no idea what kids like, but is pretty sure it shouldn't be law books. So he likes it when Edgey-junior hangs around with friends his own age who are more concerned with having fun and making a mess. He thinks Phoenix is a good influence on Miles - but he's not so sure about Larry. If the kid wasn't so destructive, maybe._**

**_Ah, Razor scooters and tamagotchis. God that takes me back._**

**_I own nothing!_**


	3. The Detention Centre

**_I'm so sorry, those who are waiting for chapters of my Fable stories! Soooo much uni stuff to do... I promise I will try and get the chapters uploaded soon!_**

**_Anyways, third chapter of this little story, and the introduction of three GK2 characters - as I haven't played the games, I've had to improvise with their personalities according to how they're described on the wiki. Sorry if there's some OOC going on there - and very sorry if I've spelt their names wrong. I'm no good with Japanese names, I'm afraid._**

**_Disclaimer: I own nothing._**

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><p>It was a Saturday, a day off from school long after the New Year, and Miles and Phoenix were playing with Power Rangers figurines in the latter's bedroom when Mrs Wright poked her head around the door.<p>

"Ah, boys, there you are. Miles, dear, your father just called to ask if you could stay here a little longer. He's got to go to the Detention Centre again. Is that all right?"

Miles looked up from where he was pitting the Pink Time Force Power Ranger against the Cyclobot in an epic battle to defend the other, injured Rangers. It might not be law, but Power Rangers was one of Miles' secret weaknesses.

"Oh, that's fine, Mrs Wright. The more clues to this case the better, so Father needs the time to talk to Mr Tenkai and see if he can get anything out of him. After all, we have no real decisive evidence, and Mr Tenkai must've been lying when he confessed."

Mrs Wright looked blank, as she always did when Miles started to talk about law. She nodded.

"That's nice, dear. Now dinner will be ready soon – you boys both like pepperoni pizza, don't you?"

Smiling at the excited response she received, the black-haired woman disappeared back around the door and before long they heard her footsteps as she went down the stairs. Miles turned back to their game, and spotted Phoenix looking at him strangely.

The silver-haired boy felt his cheeks go pink, as they always did when he spotted someone looking at him.

"What?" he asked defensively.

Little Phoenix shrugged, the too-big shoulder of his jumper sliding down his arm.

"I dunno. I was just thinking about your dad's case – are you sure Mr Ten-key was lying?"

"Tenkai. And yes, he had to be lying. He's innocent."

Miles' voice was matter of fact, and his eyes drifted back to the figurines, as though that settled that. Phoenix wasn't finished, however.

"How do you know that? There's no proof, is there?"

Miles made the Pink Time Force Power Ranger execute a special attack that left the Cyclobot keeled over, defeated. He spoke without looking up.

"Not yet. But Father will find some, don't you worry. He'll get the innocent verdict."

Phoenix twiddled his thumbs, biting his lip.

"But say there's no real proof. What if Tenkai really is the bad guy? What if your dad's wrong?"

Miles' head snapped up, a cold glare in his eyes. His words were of a slightly higher pitch than normal, showing how furious he was.

"My father's never wrong! He never defends a guilty man, all his clients are innocent! He just doesn't have the evidence to prove that yet in this case!"

The other small boy reeled from the verbal attack, his eyes widening, but then he frowned.

"But he's been fighting for years and he keeps losing! If the guy really didn't do it, why can't your dad win for once?"

Miles very nearly hit him. If he hadn't been taught all his life that it was wrong to hit people, because you might seriously hurt them, he would have slapped the ignorant spiky-haired boy across from him around the face. As it was, he tossed the figurines onto the floor with a lot of unnecessary force.

"My dad will win! He's the best defence attorney in Los Angeles, and he's gonna beat von Karma and get Tenkai off and then von Karma's record will be broken and my dad will be even more famous! Just you wait, Wright, my dad's gonna find the body, and prove Tenkai innocent and work out who really did it!"

There was a pause, in which Miles was breathing hard, his face pink. It took him a few seconds to clear his anger-clouded mind and see Phoenix's hurt expression, and a few more to realise he'd been shouting. He sighed, eyes going to the floor.

"Sorry," he muttered quietly, "I didn't mean to yell at you. And I'm sorry for throwing your toys."

He glanced up to see Phoenix smiling nervously.

"Um, that's okay. I'm sorry too. I didn't mean to make it sound like…I know your dad'll win. He's great. And nobody likes von Karma, so he's going to lose for sure."

Miles smiled at that. Phoenix smiled back. The moment was spoiled slightly a few seconds later when the spiky-haired boy sneezed pitifully and had to grope for tissues, but Miles just shook his head fondly.

"Wright, you're pathetic."

Phoenix looked up from behind the various tissues splaying from his hands and stuck his tongue out playfully.

"Not as pathetic as you, Miles Edgeworth! My Time Force Quantum Ranger will wipe your Pink Ranger from the face of the earth! Muahahahaha!"

The pair of them dived for the figurines again and commenced yet another epic battle, their own fight forgotten in the imaginary war consisting of laser beams and gunshots and a lot of yelling random gobbledegook that sounded good.

* * *

><p>Gregory Edgeworth was pacing outside of the visitor's room, getting steadily more frustrated by the minute. Although from the outside he was calm, and his pacing merely looked like the bored walking of a man who had nothing better to do, Tateyuki Shigaraki knew better.<p>

The eighteen-year-old bit his lip and fiddled nervously with the rim of his hat, which sat in his lap, as he waited for Mr. Edgeworth to explode. He admired the older man so much for his skill as a defence attorney, his determinedness even in the worst of odds and just his kindness towards everyone around him, but damn the guy could be scary at times.

Gregory glanced at the security guard again, who shrugged apologetically before hurriedly looking away. Gregory blinked at the man before shaking his head and continuing his pacing. Tateyuki felt the sudden wild urge to giggle, and looked back down at his hat, biting his lip harder. Yes, Gregory Edgeworth could be scary, and he himself was completely oblivious to this fact.

Finally, the walkie-talkie on the security guard's belt crackled, and he answered it with a curt 'Yes, sir.' He glanced up to the defence attorney and his assistant and smiled uneasily before turning to unlock the door behind him.

Manfred von Karma stepped out, his face the same arrogant sneer that he always wore. When he spotted the trench-coated defence attorney, however, his face paled to the colour of sour cream and his expression warped into one of deepest loathing, the chill of his glare matched by the heat of the anger in his eyes.

"…Edgeworth. Come to visit the condemned for one last goodbye?"

His voice sent shivers down Tateyuki's back, and by the way he paled, also that of the guard's. Gregory merely raised an eyebrow.

"Not condemned yet, von Karma. I still intend to prove him innocent."

Von Karma laughed, but it held no humour. Instead it seemed to suck the heat out of the room.

"A futile wish, Edgeworth. A von Karma's path is that of perfection, and I will have Issei Tenkai executed like the dirty criminal scum he is. Guilty of murder or accomplice, the same punishment awaits."

Tateyuki's mouth twitched. He was dying to make a dig about that so-called 'perfection' – that had, after all, been marred not three months ago – but didn't. He didn't even need Gregory's warning glance – the words had got lost on the way to his mouth and he merely stuttered some incoherent noises under his breath.

Gregory looked von Karma dead in the eye.

"Tenkai is not going to be executed. We both know he is innocent, von Karma. The evidence is out there somewhere."

The prosecutor rolled his eyes.

"Indeed."

And with that, the older man barged past Gregory, bashing into his shoulder before striding out of the door. Gregory stumbled, and turned to watch the prosecutor go, rubbing his hurt shoulder.

"And a very good morning to you too, von Karma." He muttered quietly.

The security guard cleared his throat awkwardly, then ushered them through to the visitor's room, closing the door firmly behind them with a clatter.

Issei Tenkai smiled grimly from where he sat on the other side of the glass.

"Good morning, Mr. Edgeworth, Mr. Shigaraki. I see you've already encountered Mr. von Karma this morning?"

Gregory slid into the seat opposite him, Tateyuki coming to stand just behind him. The defence attorney smiled at his client.

"You heard all that?"

The chef chuckled.

"Yes, I'm afraid I did. It seems Mr. von Karma is not too pleased with the result of a few months ago, no?"

Tateyuki sniggered.

"I'd say not. Doesn't get the verdict he wants, and gets a penalty to boot! Serves him right, cold blooded reptile!"

He then followed this insult with a far less socially-acceptable one. Gregory looked around at his assistant.

"This isn't about personal attacks, Tateyuki."

The eighteen-year-old flushed.

"No sir. Of course not, sir."

Gregory nodded and turned back, but the teenager could've sworn he saw a small smirk on the older man's mouth. The defence attorney eyed his client carefully.

"I suppose you know I'm still planning to appeal."

The chef's whole demeanor seemed to slump slightly. There was still the kind sparkle in his eyes, still the same polite smile, but all of a sudden he didn't seem to be so straight-backed anymore. And he looked exhausted – even more so than Gregory remembered.

The defence attorney frowned slightly, but his words were light.

"Proving your innocence would have been easier if you hadn't made that false confession, Mr. Tenkai."

A long pause.

Tateyuki blinked in surprise as Gregory swallowed nervously. He'd never seen Edgeworth look nervous, ever.

"That…that confession _was _false, wasn't it, Tenkai?"

Tateyuki's mouth dropped open. He couldn't believe his ears! Gregory Edgeworth, letting doubt creep in? That was unheard of! True, this case had been going for a year, and true, evidence pointed to Tenkai and it was true they were facing an undefeated prosecutor, but _still-_

"…Yes, it was. That confession…"

The chef sighed sadly.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Edgeworth. It was never my intention to make this any more difficult for you…I just…"

He paused, then flushed slightly.

"It's been over a year, Mr. Edgeworth. Over a year since…since the murder, and I've spent that year in this Centre, or under house arrest, with paparazzi at my door day and night and called out every few months for retrials and I…I guess I just broke down that day. I'm sorry."

Tateyuki chewed his lip. He'd never really thought about how hard it would have all been on the defendant. This past year, he'd been too excited in the chase for evidence, too busy focusing on how Edgeworth could catch the unbeatable von Karma out, to even think about how Tenkai must have felt.

He hadn't been there for that last trial, but he could guess how terrible the young chef must've felt to just break down like that. He bowed his head.

Gregory was also looking slightly ashamed.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Tenkai, this must be very hard on you. I can see you haven't been sleeping these past months."

Issei Tenkai smiled through his politely-covered yawn, running one hand across his tightly curled hair.

"That, and Mr. von Karma's questioning methods are…not for the faint hearted to face, so to speak."

The defence attorney blinked in shock, then his face set. His voice seemed a few octaves lower than usual, and there was the rumble of a growl behind them.

"What's he been doing now?"

The chef shrugged.

"Nothing illegal, sir, not as far as I know. Mr. von Karma just likes to be…thorough in his questionings."

Gregory Edgeworth leant forward slightly, his voice rippling with anger. Tateyuki felt shivers down his spine. Thank goodness Edgeworth was on _their _side…

"Tell me, Mr. Tenkai, just how _thorough _is von Karma?"

The chef shrugged again, this time more awkwardly. Tateyuki knew his hesitation was due to the man's sense of honour – he felt the need to be polite about everyone, no matter how twisted and evil.

"Well, his questioning sessions last a very long time, sir. He asks the same questions over and over, and demands explanations off of me. His sessions can last for hours – all night, we've been talking, on quite a few occasions."

Gregory leant back, but it was clear he was no less angry. In fact, he seemed furious, but he was careful to keep his next words calm.

"Well, Mr. Tenkai, I don't suppose you'd have anything more for us? Or any ideas of someone we could further question – Tsukasa Oyashiki, for instance?"

The chef straightened up, his serious expression turning to stone.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Edgeworth, but I must ask you to leave Tsukasa out of this. She…she's too young to get caught up in something like this, and I don't want her to get hurt."

Edgeworth nodded stiffly.

"Of course, you don't want your adoptive daughter hurt, I understand. If anything happened to my boy, if he got caught up in a murder this young…" his voice caught, "I'd never forgive myself. But I'm afraid I have to gather as much information as possible, and with all due respect, Ms. Oyashiki is already caught up in this murder as much as you are."

The chef lowered his head, defeated.

"Yes, I understand. Just, please…make sure she doesn't get hurt. I…I don't want her hurt…"

Edgeworth gave a short, polite bow.

"Of course. Good day, Mr. Tenkai."

Tateyuki looked over his shoulder as they left. Tenkai had buried his head in his hands, and it almost looked like he was nodding off. The teenager felt sorry for him.

He trotted out of the detention centre alongside Edgeworth, who had buried his hands in the pockets of his trench coat and was scowling angrily. As they crossed the road, the older man hissed something under his breath.

"That _bastard…_"

Tateyuki, shocked, missed the step up onto the curb and nearly fell over. He looked up at his mentor in shock.

"Who, _Issei Tenkai?"_

The defence attorney shook his head impatiently.

"Manfred von Karma! He's doing this on purpose, to break Tenkai down! What's that bastard up to?"

Despite his shock at his mentor using such crude terms – as well as expressing his real attitude towards the ice-cold prosecutor – Tateyuki managed to pipe up.

"Well, he's doing anything for his guilty verdict, of course. He knows Tenkai's innocent, so he's using every trick in the book. The fake autopsy report didn't work, so he's turned to making Tenkai so tired he'll do anything to make it all stop. But that won't work either," he continued, a grin starting to appear on his face," because we'll re-appeal, and we'll keep re-appealing until we win, which is what we're gonna do because you're such an awesome defence attorney! And, er… because Tenkai is innocent. That helps, too."

Edgeworth chuckled, his temper finally curbed. He late his breath out in a sigh, then glanced idly up at the sunny sky.

"So, what now, rookie?"

Tateyuki punched the flat of his palm with his other fist.

"We go back to HQ, regroup, go over the evidence and our notes and plan our next move!"

The defence attorney adjusted his glasses to hide his smile.

"And tonight, I seem to remember, is meatloaf night."

The teenager punched the air.

"I thought so! Hell yeah!"

Gregory shook his head fondly, turning in the direction of his car. Now, he wondered, can I pick up Miles from little Phoenix's house _without _it becoming a law conversation on the doorstep this time?

* * *

><p><em><strong>I get the feeling Edgey sr. and Mrs Wright are like mine and my friends' parents - Mrs Wright feeds mini-Edgey as a favour to Gregory, and Gregory feeds mini-Edgey when he gets in to apologise for being so late. Edgey jr is too polite to point out he's getting two dinners.<strong>_

_**And nobody likes von Karma. Especially not me, so I always write him as the total bastard that he is. He'll get his comeuppance, don't you worry...**_

_**And kiddo!Tateyuki is sweet. He'll be a bigger character in this, no worries.**_


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